


Not So Far Apart

by songsofthespring



Category: Welcome to Night Vale
Genre: Carlos is a Good Boyfriend, Fluff and Angst, Hurt/Comfort, M/M, Post-Episode: e049 Old Oak Doors Part B
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-07-03
Updated: 2014-07-03
Packaged: 2018-02-07 07:46:53
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,883
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1890750
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/songsofthespring/pseuds/songsofthespring
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Cecil is attempting to cope after that voicemail. Carlos, in typical Carlos fashion, decides the best cure for homesickness is scientific reasoning.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Not So Far Apart

After he listens to _that_ voicemail, exhaustion hits Cecil all at once. It has been such a long day. Merrymakers are already out on the roads, shouting and cheering, but he just keeps his head down and focuses on the road. It’s all he can do to drive home without causing a major accident. He’s not the same man who deftly avoided the buzzing shadow people while still distracted by that _kiss_.

Cecil lets himself into his house. He lifts his hand to the secret police officer watching his home when usually he’s at least able to manage a jaunty wave. He fumbles with his keys, drops them, cursing, and finally just about falls inside. He heads immediately for the couch and collapses, just lies there, too tired and shell shocked to cry. But he doesn’t sleep; there's a dry-eyed exhaustion that feels like a weight pressing down on him and it denies him the sweet release of unconsciousness.

Carlos is safe, he’s _safe_ , and yet, the thought fails to comfort him. How long will it be before he sees Carlos again? Oh, he’s certain Carlos will science his way out of this eventually, because Carlos is _so_ smart. But Cecil’s already waiting so long, fearing every moment that Carlos was lost to him, or that the threat of Strex would overpower Night Vale before they could be reunited. He’s not sure how much more of this he can take.

Khoshekh meows plaintively and rubs his side against the bottom of the couch. Cecil scoops the cat up and buries his face in Khoshekh’s thick comforting fur.

“Hi buddy,” Cecil says, careful to avoid crushing Khoshekh’s injured paw as he’s clinging to the cat for dear life. “It’s just you and I for a little while longer.”

Cecil sits and pets his cat for a long time. His legs cramp uncomfortably, but he can’t bring himself to move. He wonders if he’ll even have the strength to go in to the station tomorrow.

He’s just thinking that perhaps he ought to try to become one with the couch, since that seems like a decent existence at the moment, when he scrambles up, startling Khoshekh off the couch, and snatches up his phone.

It’s ringing.

‘Carlos,’ his heart sings, ‘Oh please be Carlos.’

He checks caller ID. It’s not Carlos. He yells, and throws his phone across the room. It hits the floor with a smack, and the battery comes flying out.

“No no no oh no _please_ don’t break I _need_ you to talk to Carlos,” Cecil moans aloud as he rushes over to the phone and fumbles with the battery. He waits impatiently for the phone to power on and starts terribly when it immediately starts ringing.

He slowly checks caller ID preparing himself for disappointment.  It’s probably just an obnoxious telemarketer. The screen shows a picture of a grinning handsome scientist and reads “My Imperfect Boyfriend <3”. Carlos. It’s Carlos! Cecil’s in thrilled shock for only a moment before he rushes to answer.

“Hello, Carlos? Carlos, are you there?”

“Hi Cecil,” says Carlos’ beautiful high tenor, which does not resemble _at all_ Steve Carlsburg’s squeaky Munchkin imitation. “I’m here.”

“I listened to your voicemail.” Cecil blurts. “I don’t know if I can—I love you _too_.”

Cecil can almost hear Carlos’ beaming smile. “I _promise_ I’m going to be home soon, Cecil. And it is so thrilling being here! Think of all the science I can do in this alternate universe. I am taking _tons_ of notes.”

“I-I’m glad Carlos.”

“Hey, Cecil, don’t worry. Science that will get me back home is taking top priority. It’ been so exciting being here but…it’s difficult, being away from you. For personal reasons, mostly.”

Cecil nods, trying to restrain the tears prickling at his eyes. He’s certain if he replies they will overflow and betray his grief. He can tell sweet Carlos is upset too. It’s all in his tone of voice and the way it cracks a little when he’s particularly choked up. He has to hold it together for Carlos, who is trying so hard to stay positive.

“But the good news is my battery hasn’t gone down all day just like Dana said!” Carlos continues with enthusiasm.  “So I can send you messages on Tumblr, and emails, and texts. And I can call of course. It’ll just be like I’m away at a very scientific conference. And, in a way, it kind of is a very scientific conference between myself and this alternate universe.”

“When you phrase it like that, it’s not so bad, I suppose.” Cecil replies, hesitantly, taking a deep breath. “And it will be nice to be able to talk to you now. You have no idea how worried I was when I couldn’t get ahold of you.”

“I’m really sorry about that. I thought I was conserving power, otherwise of course I would have been texting you and checking your Tumblr, _at least_.” He sounds so earnestly apologetic that Cecil can’t help but forgive him.

“I know.” Cecil says, smiling fondly. “I’m glad you’re safe.”

“Well, scientifically speaking, my danger meter is in the yellow, so I am in some danger,” Carlos says, but then seems to remember he’s attempting to comfort Cecil and quickly adds, “but I think it’s just because I’m here, since it’s been in the yellow with no change ever since the doors shut and disappeared.”

Cecil isn’t persuaded. As long as there’s a chance that some harm could befall Carlos, he’s worried. “Be _careful_ Carlos. I want you home in one piece. Not that I wouldn’t love you just the same if you were in more than one piece, but I do think it would be preferable if you didn’t come to any harm an--”

“ _Cecil._ I’ll be okay. So far I haven’t even seen much beyond desert. No animals or people. Unless you count the masked army, but they’ve all dispersed somewhere. I’ll let you know if that changes.”

“Okay. Okay.” Cecil takes a deep steadying breath. “I should let you go. You should start sciencing right away.”

“I’m always sciencing.” Carlos replies, smile evident in his voice. “But okay. I’ll talk to you soon. I love you.”

“I love you too.” Cecil says, softly, trying not to burst into tears this very instant.

“Cecil, will you do something for me?”

“Anything.” Cecil tells him, fervently. “Has something happened?”

“No. Cecil I’m just fine. Now, what I want you to do is promise you’ll relax. Maybe put on one of your westerns if you need to. Drink some tea. Decaf. I want you getting some sleep tonight. And then I want you to get ready for bed and try your best to sleep. I’m going to record a message on your phone, and if you can’t sleep, you can listen, okay? Can you promise me you’re going to do those things?”

“Yes Carlos.”

“Good. Hugs and kisses.”

“Xs and Os.” Cecil replies, and the familiar phrase causes him to smile, just a little. “Stay safe, Carlos.”

“I will. I’ll keep in touch.”

“Please do.”

“Goodbye.” Carlos says, softly, and then he’s gone.

Cecil slowly sets down his phone. The silence and the loneliness begin to creep in, but he gets up from the couch, determined not to be upset. He made Carlos a promise, and he intends to keep it.

In the end, he turns on a matrices documentary instead of a western. He sips his tea, and listens to the narrator talk about science, and somehow, he’s comforted instead of upset. He wonders what it means that he finds Carlos’ favorite movies more comforting in a moment of crisis than his own favorites. He’s listened to this one a couple of times, so he doesn’t really pay the science much attention, just lets the narrator’s voice provide some white noise as he sips his tea. He lets it play as he prepares for bed, and only turns off the T.V. when he’s changed and there’s nothing left to do but try to sleep.

When he checks his phone, sure enough, Carlos has left him a voicemail message. He shuts off the lights, burrows under the blankets, and plays it.

“Hi Cecil. I had a feeling you would want to listen to this. I don’t’ blame you. I miss your voice so much already, and we only just spoke.” Cecil’s heart clenches at the way Carlos’ voice cracks with emotion.

“I’ve been…uh. Listening to all the voicemails from you on my phone.” He laughs softly. “Mostly they’re you telling me things are running late at the station during the weather or calling to remind me we have a date tonight. And there’s one where you start hailing the glow cloud halfway through.” He laughs, a little less forced this time. “They remind me of home. Of what I have to return to. So I wanted to give you something to listen to too, so. Here it is.

“I’ve been thinking. It’s what a scientist is best at. What I do for a living, really. I’ve been thinking about you and I and how we’re both made of star stuff, little pieces of the universe. The universe is so vast and endless but it’s also so beautiful. And you know what? It’s all connected.” Cecil didn’t even realize he was tense until he’s relaxing, listening to Carlos’ voice get all smooth and happy like it always does when he talks about science.

“I’ve been thinking about the sky, and the stars light-years away from us, and about how when I look up at the stars, I can be reasonably certain the same stars are the same distance above you, burning bright, even if the sky in Night Vale is usually at least partially void, there’s also always partially stars.

“I’ve been thinking about the human mind and memories and objects that contain memories. Isn’t it wonderful that you can be inside my head, that I can see you so clearly, smiling and laughing, even when we’re apart? How I can look down at my bag and see that number one scientist pin you found on the internet that you insisted on buying.”

 “And then you.” He snorts. “You actually sent an angry email to the creators because they had the nerve to sell to people other than me.” He laughs, and Cecil can tell he’s grinning. Cecil smiles a little too. He’s glad he bought that pin for Carlos, even if he felt a little silly at the time after Carlos found out about that tersely worded email.

“In the cosmic scheme of things, we’re not so far apart. The universe is so very, very, vast. And even though I have no idea where exactly I am in relation to you, I do know that we’re closer than we think. And that no matter how far we are apart, I’ll always have a part of each other with you with me. So, we’re not so far apart after all. I love you. Goodnight Cecil. Goodnight.”

The message ends. Khoshekh jumps up on the bed and curls up at Cecil’s side. Cecil replays the message and closes his eyes, and he doesn’t even get to the end before he’s asleep.


End file.
